Marshall MG100DFX Reviews11 Found On 2004-09-27, Richard de Llano gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 4...(10173)
Purchase: I purchased this amp for $395 at Guitar Center. (Whenever you go to a dealer, always haggle! You will defintely get a lower price!) I purchased it to practice with my band and to play shows (which is not going to happen any time soon).
Pros: The unit is small, not so heavy, and very versatile! The tone is incredible, especially with distortion pedals. You can hear every note clearly with the OD2 on. And it can get loud! Although it can generate an onslaught of feedback; it's nothing that a good noise limiter can't handle (like the Boss NS-2 Noise Limiter). And when you hook it up to a 4x12 cab, prepare to melt! The tone becomes even sweeter! The amp actually gets louder! It's perfect for nu-metal, metal, hardcore, punk, blues, jazz, etc. You can get just about any sound out of this great little amp.
Cons: Now, there are a lot of great things about this amp, but there are also quite a few bad things... For one, if you put the volume knobs too high, you can already start to hear the sound quality deteriorate (which can be fixed with a 4x12 cab, and a noise limiter). Secondly, the reverb channel cannot be switched via the foot switcher, which is kind of a pain. Also, you can only hook it up to one cab... The MGHDFX head has outputs for 2 cabs. Last but not least... It can be very unreliable. Read on...
Quality: Like you may have already read, the amp will give out on you eventually. For me, it was about 4 months in when the fan started to make a "buzzing" sound. It faded out after a while, but it got worse as the next 2 months progressed. Eventually, the fan would completely stop (it wouldn't spin any more), and the sound on the amp would constantly die out. I haven't had a chance to take it back to the store yet, but I'm sure that the next fan I get will die out, too. I wouldn't recommend using this amp for shows (unless it's new, or has been recently fixed). Summary: Bottom line: This amp is great. It sounds amazing for the price you would pay, and hooking it up to a 4x12 cab is pure extacy. It might eventually break a few months after you purchased it... But that's okay. Just get it fixed. It'll be worth it. If you want to use it for shows, I'd recommend getting the half-stack (MG100HDFX head and MG Series 4x12 Cab). I'm giving it a 4 because of the problems this amp is givin' me. Oh, and it sounds a LOT better than the Line 6 Spider II :)
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2004-09-16, Jared gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(10030)
Purchase: I bought this amp new at musiciansfriend.com, and paid $425.
Pros: Ok, Marshall amps are no doubt the best amplifiers for rock music. I like that this amp has a solid 100 watts, and that great marhsall sound. It's got built in effects like reverb, delay, chorus, and flange, which elimintes the need to buy expensive guitar pedals.
Cons: There's a little bit of feedback at very high volumes.
Quality: This amp weighs 65 pounds, and is rock solid and extremely durable. I've gigged with this amp and it still plays like new. Some of the features include:
* 100W
* 12" speaker
* 2 channels (footswitchable)
* Digital effects including reverb, delay, chorus, and flange
* FDD (Frequency Dependent Dampening)
* CD ins, plus emulated line out, and emulated headphone jacks
* 22-1/2"W x 18"H x 11"D Summary: You don't need me to tell you to go and buy this amp, it's the top of the line and the best you're gonna get for your money. With all the different settings, this is the amp for all types of musicians.
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2004-08-09, samuel hendrix gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(9682)
Purchase: I bought this at a local music store, Hyde Music (MIddletown, RI), I traded my MG30DFX in exchange for this with a 300 dollar difference. Basically, I payed 300 dollars. I debated whether I should've gotten the 50 watt or 100 watt, so I tried both and the 50 watt barely made a difference for 100 bucks more than the 30 watt. The 100 watt is much louder, works like it should and I can hear myself playing when drums play with me, when the 50 watt has to work harder than it should to become louder, as well as put up on a chair or something to make it easier to hear, when the 100 watt does not need that.
Pros: My favorite part is the price. There is a 100 dollar difference between the MG30DFX and the MG50DFX, but only a 20 watt difference, but there is only a 75 dollar difference between the MG50DFX and the MG100DFX, with an amazing 50 watt difference! 100 watts from a marshall with many effects and only 425 bucks is a deal. I like how this amp is so loud, I barely have to turn up the master volume to 2 when I'm practicing. When I'm jamming with drums and other guitars and bass, I won't go past 8 on the master volume to hear myself! When on the 50 watt I have to crank it to 10 and there's all that buzz and I've gotta use a chair to stand it and all. This amp has great channel features. I can go from clean to distortion with the click of the footswitch, or go from slightly crunched to distortion with the crunch on the clean channel feature. Then there is also OD1/OD2, which is basically regular amp distortion to heavy metal distortion, which you cannot use the footswitch on, but you don't need that anyways. This amp has a seperate reverb level from the effects loop control, which is handy because I always have at reverb up to about 1 for anything I play, and I leave it that way, then I can seperately put, say, chorus on with the footswitch, which is handy. The master volume is also nice, because I can set the gain of the clean to whatever I want, then I can set the volume of OD channel, which is basically just setting the difference between the volume of the the OD and clean. Then I can set the master volume to about 2 when im practicing, or crank up to 8 when I'm gigging without moving any knobs and changing settings of the clean or OD, which is awesome. This is a very nice amp, and I love every feature on it, but the best part is how loud it can get and stay so clean!
Cons: Really, there is nothing I don't like about the amp, but I would change some things on my guitar if I could. My guitar is only a Squire Affinity, which, if you didn't already know, sucks. The pickups buzz like hell, and they aren't that loud, so i use the bridge pickup and the middle pickup together to elimate the buzz, which gives me a nice, very clean sound, but not exactly the best sound, because it doesn't really sound like a real strat, which I'm aiming for. But the Marshall makes a huge difference, which is why I don't really even need a new guitar. I'm just going to save up for a Seymour Duncan SH-4 JB, and put that in the bridge, about 70 bucks for that. Those pickups are very clean, trebly, and loud, without the buzz. That will make me have to practice under the master volume of 1! I would say one thing about the amp that I don't exactly like is the fan, which can be kind of annoying when practicing under low volumes at night or something. But you wouldn't hear it when jamming or gigging at all, but without it the damn amp would probly light on fire! So I can't exactly complain.
Quality: This is very nicely built, in the U.S. of course. Marshall is the best, no question, but the prices can be high, thats why I always wonder why the MG100DFX is so low priced, but I'm grateful anyways. I don't have anything against the construction, it's very well built and the wood is nice and hard and everything and the knobs are nice and simple, good looking too. I would say that it's pretty heavy, but thats ok, big amps are always heavy. Very nicely built though, but I hear about people whose amps of this model have broken down on them repeatidly, but that will not happen often, you can trust me. Summary: This amp is really just an improvement amp of the MG30DFX or MG50DFX, but if you have a 30 and are debating whether you should get a 100 watt or 50 watt, get the 100 watt. If you got the 50, you would upgrade to 100 very quickly. It's the best decision, no question. Also, the MG250DFX and MG100DFX, barely have a difference, 2 speakers does not make it louder, it just makes it bigger, and the clean channel is cleaner, but I've tried one and it's very buzzy on the OD channel, and there are only the features of the MG50DFX on that amp, when the 100 has many more than any other Marshall amp made. This is a very, very nice amp, very clean and loud. I suggest it to anyone who wants a fully giggable amp. The 100 watts can be fitted into a 12 inch speaker (MG100DFX) just as well as 50 watts into two seperate 12 inch speakers, which is in the MG250DFX. By the way, 250 doesn't mean it has 250 watts, it only has 100. Email me if you have questions please. Thanks
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2004-04-21, Billy in Asheville, NC gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 4...(8715)
Purchase: $429 from Musicians Friend
I bought it to get an amp that would be small enough to practice with but loud enough to gig with.
Pros: This thing rocks. EXCELLENT distortion sounds (sounds about as close to tube distortion as you are going to get with solid-state technology) and the effects are great! I play mostly nu-metal/hardcore and this amp is adequate for what I need. You get very smooth sounds all around. My favorite effect is the chorus but it boosts the volume big time so prepare to go deaf. Oh yeah and this amp is LOUD AS HELL. I have never turned the master volume up past about 6 even at practice with a full band. We don't even bother hooking this thing up to the PA...it can hold its own.
Cons: It would be nice if the reverb was switchable on the footswitch, but thats not a huge deal to me. I definitely don't like the fact that the amp gave up on me (hahaha)...read on!....
Quality: Alright, here it is.......
I'm not going to hold this against Marshall because with solid state technology (basically circuit boards and s%#* from countries like Japan) you are going to get lemons. Try ordering a computer motherboard nowadays...you have a 50% chance of it working out of the box. Well anyway, this amp worked GREAT for 6 months. I got it in August of 2003. About 4 weeks ago I was practicing with my band at a reasonable volume with OD2 on and we started hearing a wierd noise. At first I didn't believe it was coming from my amp but it only got worse and worse. It sounded like I had a BROKEN noise gate hooked up or something.....the amp was cutting out half of the sound and there was NO sustain whatsoever (even with a Flying V with EMG pickups!).
I had also been having problems with the fan making noise but it was only about twice a month or so and it never lasted long.
I took the amp to an authorized Marshall warranty/repair tech and had him look at it...he didn't find ANYTHING wrong with it. (after waiting 2 weeks for him to get to my amp and check it out). When I took it home, the exact same problem started over again. This time I called him and made him listen to it over the phone!! Now the amp is BACK in the shop and he HAS heard it make the stranged noises. Marshall is sending two fans (one for my amp and one for a MG250DFX that he has in the shop with the same fan problem) which should arrive early next month.....either way it is going to be another 3 weeks before I have an amp again.
Like I said, I definitely won't hold this against Marshall...and I WOULD buy another Marshall even after a hellacious experience like this. Their warranty service is great but slow. Summary: The bottom line is I ordered a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier. I have been without an amp for 3 weeks now because of this thing and I'm getting tired of playing through a PA with distortion pedals!
I still love the sound of this amp and when I get it back it will be my practice amp until it blows up!
I would reccomend this amp to anybody but get it from a local dealer if possible so they can replace it on the spot if anything goes wrong...you DON'T want to have to go through what I'm going through!
I'm giving this amp a 4 but ONLY because of my experience!
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2004-04-13, T-Bone gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(8651)
Purchase: Paid $360 out-the-door. Brand new at Guitar Center / Tucson, Arizona. Need gig capable amp with above average tonal qualities and some built-in effects, needed mostly reverb and perhaps chorus, as well as decent clean channel and some type of distortion. Since I have all kinds of pedals, I wasn't putting to many expectations on the amp I was seeking. Wanted the tube sound without the tube cost and hassles.
Pros: I like absolutely everything about this amp. From its very fine clean channel, to the OD2 distortion, which is extremely compressed at the high end. An OD1/OD2 contour button, along with the 3-band eq allows an enormous amount of tone sculpting, provided you give yourself the time to experiment. The FDD button really does a fine job of emulating the tube sound and I never turn it off, so the FDD button on, along with the OD1 channel sounds pretty much like an overdriven tube amp... I'd know, because my buddy owns a JTM60 head and 1960 4x12 cab. Oddly, I think this amp sounds much better at all volume levels... clearer, finer and much smarter.
Cons: There is nothing I don't like about this amp. When I bought it, I knew what I was buying and why and it has and surpassed expectations. I have read complaints about the circuitry cooling fan being too loud... and I roll my eyes in disbelief. The fan is barely audible. Yes, perhaps the headphone out/emulated line out is not very loud, but surly loud enough me thinks. A little more foot control would have been nice, I suppose... such as reverb on/off, but that is a minor quibble and seeks not to detract from this amps enormous qualities.
Quality: This Marshall amp is actually made in the USA by KORG, but this is not so much an issue of quality, because it is actually much better built than most Marshall amps I have seen in recent years that were made in England by Marshall. This licensing was a measure to reduce the price, and it has. The amp is built like a tank. Summary: This amp has its detractors. Arguments against this amp are mostly very subjective and would not apply to you nor I. I find this amp to be very versatile, for it packs a huge volumetric punch in a suitcase sized box. It has some standard effects built in, so one has not to worry about dragging all the stomp boxes around. The amp is a gig capable and gig worthy pick-it-up-and-go-to-the-show type of amp. It also sounds very good at low volume and can stand in as a pratice amp with potential. Most of all though, this amp sounds very good, can emulate a tube amp very closely and you will never have any tube expenses or tube worries... and we all know about that. Good tubes are expensive. If you are in the market for a high wattage amp, just go to a music store that has one of these on diplay for sound testing and play a few chords... that is all it will take, I'm pretty sure you will walk away with one of these. I know I did.
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2004-01-04, Cory Curtis gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(7354)
Purchase: I got this from a local star music store.The people were nice and also gave me an extra strap and picks and stuff. My dad bargained to around $420.
Pros: Well, everything! 100 watts.Best distortion ever.Great effects.Great for gigs and everything else.
Cons: When I switch from clean to lead it blasts way too loud and scares the crap out of me.
Wheighs way too much definitley needs wheels.
Quality: Built so thick you could run it over with a tank. Grade AAAA quality. Summary: If you get it.You won't regret this buy.Comes with footswitch.For serious players
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2003-03-18, Slink gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 4...(4566)
Purchase: Living in the UK, I purchased this amp from Nevada Music in Portsmouth (www.nevada.co.uk). I have to say the service was excellent, living at the other end of the country, in the middle of the countryside, I recieved this within 24 hours of ordering!
I paid £269 for it, with free shipping since they ship for free on orders over £100.
Pros: It may not be a valve amp, but it is Marshall and so the build quality and sound for a solid state is excellent. The price is great for what it offers. The distortion is pretty damn good, and the clean channel is superbly clean.
Offering a crunch mode on the clean and two overdrive channels, with ample effects built in it is great value for money. The FDD feature (which they claim replicates the valve sound) works fairly well. Doesn't match a valve amp, but definitely improves on the plain solid state sound. Adds that bit of warmth and roundness to it.
Plus with it being a 100watt amp, it is more than loud enough to play small gigs, and more over, for my band to practice effectively.
Cons: Well, only thing I can complain about is that it's not a valve amp, but for the price it's kind of unfair to complain about that!
I do plan to get a valve head and cabs, but for now with the money I had this was the best I could get, and it certainly pleases!
Quality: Being Marshall, the build quality seems excellent. It's extremely sturdy, and weighs in fairly handsomely! It's about 1 and a half foot square, and half as deep, and weighs in at about 25kg. Getting it all positioned on a decent 'plinth' I think I almost tore a muscle... Summary: Superb value for money, and a remarkably good sound quality. Definitely worthy to hold the Marshall badge.
Looking forward to seeing how it deals with pedals, and the effect input on the back, to add another stage of effects to the preamp seperate from the guitar line.
It get's 5 stars in my heart for being so good for the price, but loses a star technically since a Marshall valve amp will always beat it.
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2003-03-13, Bob in Asheville, NC gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 4...(4535)
Purchase: I just played this head 3 days ago at a local dealer. I dont have one of my own yet but I will be buying one very soon.
Pros: The Best thing about this head is the price. Its a great sounding head to be solid state. The price at the local dealer in NC is $399. Where are you going to find a Marshall head for that price ??? I used to have a Marshall 50 Watt Tube Head that was made in 1980 and this amp doesnt even compare to the Awesome tube sound but still its probably the best solid state distortion Ive ever heard. Really great for Heavy Metal. And the Clean Channel is just that "CLEAN" with no flaws whatsoever.
Cons: Well first off its not a tube head. Yeah some guys say it sounds as good as a tube head but I guarantee you if they play through a Tube Marshall a week they wont tell you that. Nothing can compare to the warmth a EL34 Tube makes. BUT your not going to find a NEW WARANTEED Tube head for nowhere near this price. And thats why Im going solid state myself is for the money factor. Like I say for a Solid State head you cant go wrong. If you can afford a Marshall tube head Thats what you should buy. However if your a poor broke countryboy like me and still want a great sound this is the amp. Hey it sure beats the crap out of the TUBE Yamaha head I used to own.
Quality: Well as I said I just played it at a dealer and dont yet own my own but the construction seemed really durable. Ive never once saw a Marshall Tube, Solid State, or whatever that wasnt built like a brick wall. Hey on the construction they kill. But what do you expect from a name like Marshall ??????? Summary: The bottom line is Money. Buy what ya can afford. If ya cant afford tube Marshalls then this is what ya need to buy. Ive been playing Metal over 13 years now and in the past a new Marshall Head at this price was unheard of regardless of being Valvestate, or Tube. Even the Valvestate Marshalls which are sorta the cross breed of a Tube head and a solid state head are going to cost you much more than this head. If your on a budget buy this amp and you wont be sorry. No doubt about it!!
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2003-01-19, Cooper Steve gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(4036)
Purchase: Upgraded from Marshall MG30DFX
Was interested in the additional headroom. outboard effects loop and master volume control.
cost £270 delivered
Pros: For the money this is one serious amplifier; winner of sub £900 cat in the 2002 Guitarist poll.
Great range of controlable tones both clean and distorted. The master volume allows thise tonies to be turned down to suit a small playing area.
Solid contruction.
Supplied 2 way foot switch.
Its a 100 watt Marshall.......
Cons: At this price can not think of anything.
Quality: Looks pretty tidy and able to take a few knocks. Cheap enough to replace if you are seriously gigging with it every few years. Summary: If you try one ~ you will buy one.
Its a 100 watt Marshall on the cheap.
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2002-10-11, Daniel Hurt, Australia gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(2855)
Purchase: Aquired the unit at Macron Music Central Coast, Sydney, Australia. I'm 18 years old and after going through a couple of fenders there was only one place to go. I was after the next step up in my guitar playing and this amp offered everything i wanted in design, sound and price. I was going to get the 50 watter but was reccomended against it by a few people for issues concerning quality rather than wattage. But don't worry all thise people also reccomended this amp.
AUS$880 - $450US
Pros: The amp has 2 or 3 channels depending on how you want to look at it. The thing just sounds amazing. I love playing the blues so for me it's everything i wanted and more. By just turning the contour knob you can come from belting out an ACDC riff to non-stop punk rock. I seem to use the overdrive channel more than the clean, but with four different kinds of marshall distortion wouldn't you!
If there was only one thing i could comment on it would have to be the clarity. No matter how distorted this thing gets you can still hear every note.
The construction is solid and it looks beautiful and hey it doesn't sound to bad with your stereo running throught it either!
Cons: the unit is perfect, i have only one problem at the moment. If you're after a high range tone with the bass lowered this might not be the amp for you but hey, that's the reason i went for a marshall!
Quality: The clean channel has a smooth creamy clear tone with an independant gain control, mid, bass and treble and a clean crunch button so you can have distortion on both channels.
The overdrive channel has the same but contains contour, independant volume and a switch to change from distorted to really distorted.
The digital effects include chorus, delay, flange and independant reverb. These are contolled by the FX level control.
Finally there is a master volume and a switch that allows the combination of new marshall technology to create valve emulation.
Just a couple more things
cd input
line out and headphone jack
some fx jacks on the back
oh, and a fan to keep your 12 inch speaker nice and cool.
The construction is as solid as a rock. There's nothing on it you can break if it's reasonably looked after.
The footswitch provided feels like solid metal with chrome buttons to switch between channels and turn the FX on and off.
It is pretty big having something like a 59cm by 57cm face and weighs 23.5kg but i'm 6'2 so i don't notice. Summary: Probably one of most affordable combo amps on the market and also the best. If you want something to play on stage with and hate the weight of a stack this is the amp for you. I'll never need another amp again.
Get out and buy one of these
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons On 2002-10-07, Jimi gave this Marshall Guitar Amplifier a 5...(2836)
Purchase: I was looking for a realtivley cheap, gig ready amp that had greta tonal qualities and was reasonably versatille. I paid £225 new.
Pros: This amp is great. Its got a really great sounding clean channel with soundds mimicking exactly that of a valve amp. The reverb is very natural sounding and when turned up delivers a great live sound. The Overdrive is superb. OD1 has a blues like Hendrix'y sound whereas OD2 has got tonnes of low end grunt- great for metal
Cons: The effects on this amp are a little limited but what there is of premier Marshall quality
Quality: This amp is solidly built, the finnish is great ohb and its heavy...very heavy. Summary: Great amp, why spend £400 on a valve when you can spend £200 and get the same sound
Search for more Marshall Guitar Amplifier reviews and comparisons
© Chris Bereznay - Gear Review Network / MusicGearReview.com - 2000
|
|
